Page 198 - English for Writing Research Papers

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Elisabetta uses four types of hedging devices. The numbers below refer to the num-
bers in the text.

modal verbs

may have + past participle (1) indicates a probability that Elisabetta is not 100% sure about,
but she proposes it as being a reasonable calculation based on her (and / or others’) studies
of demographics.

could have + past participle (3) refers to a past capacity that she assumes would have been
possible.

link words

yet (2) means that despite the estimates made in the previous sentence, Elisabetta has evi-
dence that may contradict these estimates. however (7) has a similar function, as again
Elisabetta is contesting previous research.

thus (4) and in fact (10) are used by Elisabetta to provide further support for what she has
just said. They guide the reader in following Elisabetta’s gradual build up of logical
evidence.
verbs that indicate uncertainty

appears to have been (5) and would seem to (8) are used to precede findings that Elisabetta
wishes to propose to her community. She is a young researcher and is taking a modest
approach, she doesn’t want to irritate the referees or readers by appearing too presumptu-
ous. Although (5) uses the present tense and (8) uses the conditional, in reality there is only
a minimal difference – the conditional just adds another 10% of softening!

adverbs

probably (6) and necessarily (9) are both used to qualify the verb built . Elisabetta uses these
adverbs to soften the impact and implications of what she is saying. Again, she is protecting
herself from possible criticism by other authors and from future research that might invali-
date her theories.

Elisabetta concludes her discussion by providing evidence that the Romans could
have built the aqueduct much earlier if they had wanted to, and that the real reason
for the aqueduct was to supply thermal baths and monumental fountains, and to
irrigate fi elds.

Our findings (11) suggest that the aqueduct in Gortyn cannot have been built earlier than the
second century AD. In fact, archaeological data show that many cities, like Gortyn, had a
high standard of urban, social and political life even before the Roman age.
(12) There is thus evidence that the aqueduct only became necessary when “Rome” decided
to transform Gortyn into a Roman provincial capital, which entailed Gortyn having thermal
baths, monumental fountains, theatre, amphitheatre and well-irrigated and cultivated land
to supply its inhabitants.